Restaurant adding fee for use of credit card

[rjsob58]

More and more restaurants seem to be adding a fee if you use your credit card. I've seen this be upwards of 3%. I know that the CC companies charge a transaction fee, but it just seems wrong to be passing this on to the consumer. I don't like carrying extra cash. And it is much easier to track spending by categories when using a CC. Is anybody using their debit cards instead which usually does not incur the extra fee?

 

[Jerry1]

I don't use my debit card for anything except getting cash out of the ATM. I don't like the extra fee but I guess we can't expect our cash back rewards to go on forever. As long as I know in advance, it doesn't upset me to pay the fee but generally, I'll use cash in that situation. I always have cash on me and generally have some small bills because I like to tip with cash.

I thought the debit card carries the threat of not protecting you if your card is compromised. I'd want to confirm/understand that risk before I use my debit card if I was considering that path. Maybe on of the cash pay apps on your phone would be safer?

 

[VanWinkle]

Ask when you enter the restaurant and leave if they up charge for a credit card.
Let them know why you are leaving. This is the only way to change their thinking by hurting their sales.

 

[Car-Guy]

I've felt for years the CC surcharge was already baked in the price. Now they are adding an extra charge from my POV, and blaming it on CC fees.

 

[Dtail]

I have not seen this upcharge yet and we eat out enough times. I will certainly not use my debit card. Not sure I would walk out, possibly depends on how many restaurants are employing this charge.

 

[Surewhitey]

This has happened 2 times in the past month. An expensive restaurant (our first time) and AT&T basically said they will raise the price for internet by $5 if we don't change to direct bank pay. The restaurant was +4%...I'll start carrying cash for these in the gotcha moments as they will likely not alert you upon entry. I suspect in a good economy most don't even notice, just us kinda folks.

 

[VanWinkle]

I've felt for years the CC surcharge was already baked in the price. Now they are adding an extra charge, from my POV and blaming it on CC fees.

I agree 100%

 

[Aerides]

It must only be lower price places where they feel they can't bake it in? Yeah... I'm not going to be back to any place that tries this.

Most ppl using CC's will spend more than those using cash - there are a million studies on this.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Maybe we will start going back to checks. Paying by check for them would be inconvenient. My dentist charges a CC fee so we pay by check.

 

[latexman]

I feel this may hurt their wait staff and those that share tips. Some folks will subtract that CC upcharge from their normal tip. That's not good.

 

[MarieIG]

CC fees are not new or a surprise to the restaurant, and I agree these costs were already baked in. IMHO, it would be less obnoxious just to raise the prices on the menu. Many people don't appreciate being "nickeled and dimed to death."

I don't hand out my debit card due to security factors.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

We do not use debit cards except for an ATM withdrawal. They are way too easy to compromise, and banks do not help promptly when needed to resolve issues with them. We keep ours in our safe when not in use. We perhaps use them once a year if that. With few exceptions if an establishment does not take CCs or charges a fee for doing so, we simply take our business elsewhere or pay by check in the case of our dentist. But we are better planned than most.

 

[euro]

I've felt for years the CC surcharge was already baked in the price. Now they are adding an extra charge from my POV, and blaming it on CC fees.

I agree, of course, the cc fees have always been baked into the price. SOMEONE has to pay them and one way or the other it is the consumer. It's just another option to keep menu prices steady while bringing in more revenue. The hope is that people will be more forgiving of the added fee than a bump in menu prices. Whether that is the case or not, remains to be seen. Personally, I prefer One price with no added fees and nickles and dimes. I do realize though that, in the end, the piper has to be paid.

 

[Music Lover]

I've felt for years the CC surcharge was already baked in the price. Now they are adding an extra charge from my POV, and blaming it on CC fees.

If they were baked into the price then the people who paid with cash or debit have been getting ripped off for years.

 

[Gumby]

I haven't seen credit card surcharges at restaurants around here, but gas station prices are, by law, explicitly listed as separate cash and credit prices. I always pay with a credit card because I'd have to make sure I have enough cash on me and take extra time to go inside and hand over some cash first before I pump and then go back inside to get my change. I also get cash rewards from my credit card.

With respect to restaurants, if I thought that the restaurant was too expensive considering everything including the credit surcharge, then I just wouldn't go. But I wouldn't get all in a huff because they tried. They could just increase all the menu prices by 3% instead.

 

[Texas Proud]

The first time I am charged a fee is the last time I will go to that place...

They KNOW that the vast majority will use CC and they are just not raising their price...

I want an all inclusive price... and even if it keeps going up (like Chipolte) I will still go if I like their food and no funny business...

 

[HawkeyeNFO]

My main credit card gives me back 3.3% on everything, so if the fee is less than that, it's still gonna be the payment method of choice.

Edit to answer aja8888's question below.....it's an old Priceline .com Rewards Visa, grandfathered into an old program. Their new system is not so generous.

 

[aja8888]

My main credit card gives me back 3.3% on everything, so if the fee is less than that, it's still gonna be the payment method of choice.

Which card gives you back that much? The best I can get is 2%.

 

[cathy63]

It will be interesting to see if these credit card fees are allowed in California now that the AG has confirmed that the new junk fee ban applies to other types of restaurant surcharges. No more hidden fees. Junk fee law bans restaurant surcharges

 

[Lewis Clark]

Some of my doctors have started adding in a credit card fee. But they don't tell you until you reach the checkout desk at the end of the appointment.

 

[sengsational]

If they state it on the menu, I'm fine with it.

There's the bottom line aspect to my decisions on where to eat. It's a gut feel look-back over time. I go out, enjoy myself, sign and the bottom line goes into the personal finance software. If I see a trend I don't like with one option, I'll go somewhere else. The idea that I'd change my behavior based on whether they put the credit card expense in the prices or make it separate line item seems whacky to me.

 

[pacergal]

We carry cash for dining out and we use our debit card quite frequently. We have never had a problem with it. I have all of the alerts on it, and could catch anything rather quickly.

 

[OldShooter]

I'm not sure why people are so steamed up about this. Credit card fees are a cost, so the only question is "who pays?" It seems logical to me that the person who benefits from using the card should be the one who pays. Same as believing that the person who wants french fries should be the one who pays for them.

From a numbers angle, that "tiny" credit card fee could easily take 25% or more of a small shop's net profit.

Another angle: My "wine guy" is sole owner and clerk at his well-curated shop. I like him and want to see him do well, so I always write him checks instead of using a card. The fees he pays (accommodating most customers) have a significant impact on his net.

 

[Teacher Terry]

I carry cash to pay at restaurants because of the added fees. At gas stations I use my credit card because I don’t want to hassle with going in.

 

[aja8888]

One of my long time friends owns a bar/restaurant here in the Houston, Texas area (30 years running now - The Woodlands). He told me he has the CC fee baked into his prices as he doesn't want to piss off his customers.